Police Warn Shoppers Of Holiday Cons And Thievery

By Charles Rogers

Police Warn Shoppers Of Holiday Cons And Thievery By Charles Rogers

By Charles Rogers

The holiday shopping season is coming to an end, with Christmas itself just five days away. According to the NYPD and officials at the 69th Precinct, the riffraff, pickpockets and con-persons who prey on unsuspecting shoppers and others are on the prowl.

The con games have already started, according to local detectives, who said one of those classics was perpetrated in the local area recently.

According to Fraud Squad officials, a Canarsie woman and another woman both apparently spied a paper bag full of money lying on Rockaway Parkway between Conklin Avenue and Glenwood Road on an afternoon last week. The con came to fruition when the victim, a woman in her early 20s, said she saw the bag the same time as the other woman and they agreed to split the contents — said to be a few thousand dollars in cash — with her fellow finder.

"Of course, following the pattern, the second woman met with a confederate at the same time," said the NYPD official, "and the confederate agreed to be an ‘arbitrator’ and hold the money while both the original ‘finders’ came up with up-front security cash to solidify the deal."

Usually in con games such as this, the person being conned is asked to go to the bank and draw cash as "security" but, since the victim did not have a bank account locally, the con-person and "arbitrator" both accompanied her to her home and agreed to take jewelry instead. As soon as the arbitrator had the jewelry in her hand, she said she would check with a neighborhood lawyer as to the legality of the transaction.

"Of course, there was no legality, no transaction and no lawyer," said the Fraud Squad agent. "Both the finder and arbitrator have not been seen again, except maybe by another victim."

3. Don’t place packages on the rear seat of your car and leave them unattended. Place all packages in the trunk and be sure it is locked.

4. Don’t carry your purse by the handle or place your arm through the strap and let the pocketbook dangle. Place one end of the purse in the palm of your hand and the other in the bend of the elbow. Draw it close to the body.